Centre for Language and Communication Studieshttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/56
CLCSFri, 09 Dec 2016 17:25:20 GMT2016-12-09T17:25:20ZTowards a discipline of implicational linguistics : evidence from Korean learners of Englishhttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/78237
Towards a discipline of implicational linguistics : evidence from Korean learners of English
Van Vlack, Stephen P.
A wealth of new models related to language and language teaching/learning have been introduced of late, but despite the fact that these models have much to offer a more complete view of language, they have yet to be integrated into the mainstream. This thesis, therefore, endeavours to draw attention to the need for what can be termed an implicational approach to linguistics. In an implicational approach, findings from such contexts as the language classroom, as well as from other related fields, which may better describe language learning situations and results, are to loop back onto theories of language. It is posited that through these implicational loops a more complete and viable model of language can be developed. As a possible movement towards implicational linguistics, the purpose of this thesis was to show the effects of teaching practices, developed from linguistic theories and models of language, on the linguistic development of English as a foreign language for learners in South Korea. A comprehensive set of data relating to the English systems these learners had internalized was gathered and analysed to determine what they knew and how they were able to use this information, particularly through their integration in the mental lexicon. This data was correlated back to a fairly rich set of theories from diverse areas related to language and language teaching/learning to determine which sets of theories may best describe the result of the learning process, as exhibited by the subjects.
Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMThttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/782372008-01-01T00:00:00ZSentence mode, alignment and focus in the intonation of Cois Fharraige, Inis Mór and Gaoth Dobhair Irish : a dual approachhttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/78157
Sentence mode, alignment and focus in the intonation of Cois Fharraige, Inis Mór and Gaoth Dobhair Irish : a dual approach
O'Reilly, Maria
This work is devoted to the analysis of the intonation in three varieties of Irish: Gaoth Dobhair (Donegal within Ulster), and Cois Fharraige and Inis Mor (Connemara within Connaught). The experimental work is carried out at two levels of analysis. The melodic contours are described in terms of their tonal composition with the IViE annotation system, and the phonetic parameterisation is conducted by means of parallel contour-based and Fujisaki model measurements. The aims of this study are (1) to gain new insights into the intonation of two dialects of Irish with respect to cross-dialect and within-dialect variation, and (2) to assess the Fujisaki model for its suitability to perform analysis (and to some degree also synthesis) of the intonation of Irish dialects. With respect to aim (1), the work confirms an intonational divide between Ulster and the rest of the island and shows that the differences are not limited to the phonological level. The quantitative results indicate that the differences conveyed on the tonal level are further enhanced by concomitant phonetic effects in the melodic contour. Possible phonetic differences between the intonation of Cois Fharraige and Inis Mor were not found. However, the Inis Mor speakers were found to use a wider array of tunes than the Cois Fharraige speakers. In relation to aim (2), the Fujisaki model is shown to be adequate for the synthesis of f0 contours of Irish, and is found to perform better on the Gaoth Dobhair data compared to the data from Cois Fharraige and Inis Mor. Unfortunately, the model is not an equally promising analytical tool in the linguistic sense. Drawing meaning directly from the model’s amplitude parameters is made difficult because of the superposition of the phrase and accent components; the timing parameters of the model, however, are easily interpretable.
Wed, 01 Jan 2014 00:00:00 GMThttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/781572014-01-01T00:00:00ZFirst language attrition and second language acquisition in a second language environmenthttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/78154
First language attrition and second language acquisition in a second language environment
Opitz, Cornelia
This thesis is concerned with the outcomes of the parallel processes of first language maintenance and second language acquisition in adult bilinguals resident in a second language environment. Current perspectives on first language attrition and bilingualism makes a strong case for considering L1 attrition as a feature of multi-competence in bilinguals, and for taking mto account changes across the range of languages known by a bilingual in assessing proficiency. They suggest that the simultaneous maintenance of several languages by a bilingual may result in trade-offs between those languages, but also that dynamic interactions between languages and a host of other factors will result in very different outcomes for individuals.
Sat, 01 Jan 2011 00:00:00 GMThttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/781542011-01-01T00:00:00ZA relevance theoretic analysis of contrast connectives in Spanish : pero and aunquehttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/78149
A relevance theoretic analysis of contrast connectives in Spanish : pero and aunque
Olmos, Susana
This thesis presents a pragmatic analysis of a number of contrast connectives in Spanish, in particular pero ‘but’ and aunque ‘although’. The study follows the theoretical framework of Relevance Theory (RT). The ideas put forward in this analysis build on previous RT analyses of the English counterparts, but and although. We provide an account of the fiinction of these connectives based on the notions of the procedural meaning and inferentiality (Blakemore 1987, 1993, 2000, 2002, Iten 1998; 2000(a), 2005 and Hall 2003, 2004, 2005). However, we develop this account further by providing a different analysis of how pero and aunque contribute to the process of utterance comprehension. From a RT point of view, our analysis follows the main tenets on which the theory is based. Our analysis of the connectives pero and aunque builds on the RT position that there is great reliance on the process of inferencing in deriving the meaning explicitly communicated. We propose a procedural meaning for these connectives based on the idea of contrast with alternatives. This analysis favours a view of their effects as arising from the explicit rather than the implicit side of what is communicated. In particular, these connectives are analysed as constraints on the derivation of propositional attitudes and illocutionary forces, which in this theory are described as higher level explicatures. This analysis of pero and aunque, as contributing to the explicit side of communication, contrasts with previous RT studies of their English counterparts but and aunque, in which these latter have been described as constraints on the derivation of the implicit content
Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMThttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/781492008-01-01T00:00:00Z